so, to attempt to answer the original question posted by the thread's originator, in my humble opinion, yes, a narrative can be composed that prevents 9/11 with a bare minimal amount of handwavium, merely a matter of the right document(s) falling in the right hands at the right time.
I think it could even be done by making Dick Cheney The Unexpected Hero!
as Orville_third very thoughtfully noted:
Let's twist fate a teeny bit, just so that an intel officer gets the exact several pieces of paper within the space of two hours, and that officer knows... Dick Cheney. "Hey boss," officer says in passing. "Take a look at this."
Cheney gives micro-nod concurrent with Cheney Half-Smirk.
Undetermined amount of time after, Cheney in very very dimly lit room, sits in chair, looks at papers. See him looking at papers for an uncomfortable amount of time. Maybe a minute or two.
Then it's flashing to a lightly blurred montage of images... it's a dream-sequence. We see images of Byck, the angry twisted fuck who killed innocent people with zero hesitation for the object of hijacking a 747 and flying it into the White House.
It turns out Dick Cheney had a few sleepless nights right after that, the same dream waking him up, jolting him up in bed, cringing in agony and grabbing his heart.
Slow pan of vintage image of Boeing 747, interspersed with flashes of Byck, with sound of jet engines starting up. From this to grainy footage of 747 flying overhead, a touch shakily perhaps.
Briefest flash of White House seen from above.
Flash of light, then black, then screams.
Cheney's forehead is almost covered in sweat.
We are behind him in a hallway, he is practically running.
Cut to conference room, filled with a couple high-ranking civilians and a half-dozen of the meanest-looking generals and colonels you have seen in a very long time if ever.
Moussaui is hauled in. Dim room, see him again through trick mirror, even though we know that torture is not effective, they're throwing all and the kitchen sink at this bastard's head. In-his-face confrontation, Moussaui laughs. Cut to REALLY FAT syringe being prepared. Who came with you? Who is with you? Who is doing this? Who is on your team? How many planes?
Cut to very violent scenes of rooms being burst into by men-in-black, familiar face --Atta!-- and other faces dragged out into brief daylight and into dark metal vans. We see another dim room, a man hurled into view.
The scene with Moussaui repeats with minor variations with the new detainee.
Then the screen splits, suspect #1 goes to bottom screen, Atta himself is hurled into room on top half of screen. The screen splits again, and again, and again. Sixteen squares. Who is with you. Who are you working with. How many teams. How many planes.
Cheney standing at back of room. Camera pulls back. Cheney, grim face, flanked by others in uniform in navy-blue suits. Pull back, presidential seal, the president is addressing the nation, and it is very very very very very serious.
Cheney looks to side, gives half smirk and micro-nod, faces back front.
Optional:
It's winter. Osama Bin Laden and a small entourage are gathered in close quarters. Bin Laden has an irritated expression on his face.
He doesn't know how good he has it.
Ooops. Did I say has? I meant had.
Fast-moving shapes, clad in dark fabric, half the folks in the room are reduced to shaking chunks, cut immediately to a long, long person being dragged out roughly with a black hood covering his face. A broken bleeding face with a mostly white beard --a medical doctor gone completely to waste-- photographed and covered with cloth.
I think it could even be done by making Dick Cheney The Unexpected Hero!
as Orville_third very thoughtfully noted:
And, lest we forget, Cheney and Rumsfeld were in the Executive Branch when Samuel Byck nearly killed Nixon.
Let's twist fate a teeny bit, just so that an intel officer gets the exact several pieces of paper within the space of two hours, and that officer knows... Dick Cheney. "Hey boss," officer says in passing. "Take a look at this."
Cheney gives micro-nod concurrent with Cheney Half-Smirk.
Undetermined amount of time after, Cheney in very very dimly lit room, sits in chair, looks at papers. See him looking at papers for an uncomfortable amount of time. Maybe a minute or two.
Then it's flashing to a lightly blurred montage of images... it's a dream-sequence. We see images of Byck, the angry twisted fuck who killed innocent people with zero hesitation for the object of hijacking a 747 and flying it into the White House.
It turns out Dick Cheney had a few sleepless nights right after that, the same dream waking him up, jolting him up in bed, cringing in agony and grabbing his heart.
Slow pan of vintage image of Boeing 747, interspersed with flashes of Byck, with sound of jet engines starting up. From this to grainy footage of 747 flying overhead, a touch shakily perhaps.
Briefest flash of White House seen from above.
Flash of light, then black, then screams.
Cheney's forehead is almost covered in sweat.
We are behind him in a hallway, he is practically running.
Cut to conference room, filled with a couple high-ranking civilians and a half-dozen of the meanest-looking generals and colonels you have seen in a very long time if ever.
Moussaui is hauled in. Dim room, see him again through trick mirror, even though we know that torture is not effective, they're throwing all and the kitchen sink at this bastard's head. In-his-face confrontation, Moussaui laughs. Cut to REALLY FAT syringe being prepared. Who came with you? Who is with you? Who is doing this? Who is on your team? How many planes?
Cut to very violent scenes of rooms being burst into by men-in-black, familiar face --Atta!-- and other faces dragged out into brief daylight and into dark metal vans. We see another dim room, a man hurled into view.
The scene with Moussaui repeats with minor variations with the new detainee.
Then the screen splits, suspect #1 goes to bottom screen, Atta himself is hurled into room on top half of screen. The screen splits again, and again, and again. Sixteen squares. Who is with you. Who are you working with. How many teams. How many planes.
Cheney standing at back of room. Camera pulls back. Cheney, grim face, flanked by others in uniform in navy-blue suits. Pull back, presidential seal, the president is addressing the nation, and it is very very very very very serious.
Cheney looks to side, gives half smirk and micro-nod, faces back front.
Optional:
It's winter. Osama Bin Laden and a small entourage are gathered in close quarters. Bin Laden has an irritated expression on his face.
He doesn't know how good he has it.
Ooops. Did I say has? I meant had.
Fast-moving shapes, clad in dark fabric, half the folks in the room are reduced to shaking chunks, cut immediately to a long, long person being dragged out roughly with a black hood covering his face. A broken bleeding face with a mostly white beard --a medical doctor gone completely to waste-- photographed and covered with cloth.